Lezing | This Week's Discoveries
Predators make it harder for herbivores to adapt to global warming
- Datum
- dinsdag 11 mei 2021
- Tijd
- Bezoekadres
- Zoom
In February this year, Michiel Veldhuis won the C.J. Kok Public Award, the prize for the Discoverer of the Year. Veldhuis researches how climate change affects savannah ecosystems in Africa and how we can protect them.
Predators make it harder for herbivores to adapt to global warming
Global warming compels larger endothermic animals to adapt either physiologically or behaviourally to avoid thermal stress, especially in tropical ecosystems. Their adaptive responses may however be compromised by other constraints, such as predation risk or starvation. Using an exceptional camera-trap dataset spanning 32 protected areas across southern Africa, we find that intermediate-sized herbivores (100–550 kg) switch activity to hotter times of the day when exposed to predation by lions. These herbivores face a tight window for foraging activity being exposed to nocturnal predation and to heat during the day, suggesting a trade-off between predation risk and thermoregulation mediated by body size.
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About This Week's Discoveries
Every week an inspiring research project
Prestigious grants, cum laude PhDs, new chairs: each week This Week's Discoveries revolves around one research project. In a short comprehensible presentation the research will be explained and there is room for questions and discussion.
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After the presentation and discussion there will be the opportunity to talk to colleagues in small groups. In break-out rooms you can continue the discussion, get to know colleagues you've never met before or catch up with people you haven't run into for a while.
This Week's Discoveries will take place weekly on Tuesdays from 12.30 to 13.00 in Zoom. Afterwards there is the possibility to meet each other in break-out rooms in small groups.